Ideology: Essay

How valuable has ideological analysis been in developing your understanding of the themes in your chosen films?

Ideology, in terms of filmmaking, relates to how the filmmaker represents a particular idea. This idea isn’t simply a narrative or stylistic one that serves that craft of the production, but instead a philosophy of sorts or a selection of values relating to society or us as individuals. It’s a specific perspective (the perspective of the main creative force behind the work, in this case the director). Different groups of people have unique and intricate beliefs about life and how to live life and the filmmaker often uses the tools at their disposal to not just show but support select views that they feel. Whether there is a direct intention behind a particular ‘ideology’ found in a filmmaker’s work, stories are almost always demonstrative of any agenda or political opinions they may have. Even if there is no explicit intent behind the filmmaking being reflective of their views and philosophies, often an artist can’t help but infuse a creative endeavor with the manner in which they perceive their own social environment. Both Beasts of The Southern Wild (Benh Zeitlin, 2012) and La La Land (Damien Chazelle, 2014) present these types of ideologies to a receptive viewer. A world view that can be defined and is built through the application of specific cinematic techniques.

Beasts Of The Southern Wild, Benh Zeitlin’s feature debut, is an award winning indie film which tells the story of a poor father and daughter living in a small Delta community under the threat of flood. The central character ‘Hushpuppy’ wants to find her mother as life gradually becomes more challenging and her father experiences a sickness. This drama follows the story of these two characters and all the problems they encounter in this particular environment of poverty. The film opened to fantastic reviews following its success at the Sundance film festival and would go on to be nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards. The film arguably presents an ‘explicit’ ideology relating to poverty, global warming and how people being effected by these conditions have to live.

For example, Zeitlin takes an approach that builds a ‘worldview’ based around that of the central protagonist of Hushpuppy and the terrible conditions in which she is forced to live. Perhaps, through doing this, the filmmaker is attempting to suggest that the audience takes a kind of action in their own lives (as they are presumably a lot more privileged with wealth) and to raise awareness about the problems taking place in the world. For instance, during one of the first sequences of the film in which we are introduced to the characters and the environment that they will eventually be forced to leave, the audience is shown Hushpuppy run round desolate areas and play in houses that demonstrate their poverty. The houses even appear structurally unstable in some cases. It’s important to note that this entire sequence is shot with a handheld camera. A creative decision that grounds the film’s narrative worldview/ideology in a kind of authentic reality. The notably shaky and unstable camera reflects the unstable and dangerous environment Hushpuppy has to inhabit, therefore emphasising the ideologies in question. Within this sequence, a lot of closeups of Hushpuppy and the different objects around her are used to make the experience an engrossing one and the ideas presented can feel more like real world issues.

Stylistically, the filmmaker clearly takes a lot of inspiration from the work of Wong Kar Wai and independent cinema of Japan as so many independent filmmakers have (filmmakers who present their own explicit ideologies). Relating to the relatively minimal budget of the production, this style is extremely easy to replicate and is also (from a practical perspective in relation to time constraints and efficiency) very ‘easy’ to attain coverage of a scene in a short space of time. Hand held cameras, a provocative score, voice over and aesthetically pleasing visuals create a grounded and naturalistic atmosphere and a structurally efficient method of executing said story. In the same vein as Terrence Malick’s work, a lot of the character development comes in the form of voiceover like the sequence in question and various plot points are integrated into a more sporadic and free flowing filmmaking sensibility that is all reliant upon the concept of viewing Hushpuppy’s world and considering what the ideological implications become. Another effect of the ‘pick up and shoot’ feel is that it places the viewer in the subjective perspective of our central protagonist ‘Hushpuppy’ whose innocence and growing strength in the face of adversity defines how we as the audience perceive these narrative progressions. Within this introductory sequence, Hushpuppy is also shown interacting with others in a collaborative and mutually dependent manner, possibly suggesting that to counter the problems relating to poverty we as the audience must assist in this process of collaboration due to the fact a Western audience inevitably has more money and a safer living space than Hushpuppy.

Another example of Zeitlin taking an ideological standpoint through Beasts of The Southern Wild comes during one of the fantasy sequences that feature the mythical ‘aurochs’. In one of the first sequences featuring these beasts, the audience are shown the giants crash through the slums destroying everything in their path (this being representative of the threat of global warming and the flooding that will take place, destroying Hushpuppy’s living space). The camera quickly tracks the aurochs from left to right in a chaotic way due to the fact it appears the subjects are being shot with a long focal length, despite the fact that these subjects and presumably the environment are computer generated. This compresses the image and also makes the action more kinetic. These techniques become symbolic of the speed at which an issue such as global warming takes effect and the destruction it inflicts. Expectations are diverted through the use of a ‘fantasy’ sequence in a feature that can be classified as a gritty drama. An explicit statement is made as a result of this.

Alternatively, it could be argued that the overall ideology presented within the film and through the characters written in the screenplay, is one of hope but not necessarily accuracy. The aim may be to present a philosophy that states that with collaboration and a persevering approach to the issues that come with a challenging way of living, everything will be okay in the end (symbolised through Hushpuppy’s final strengthening interaction with the mythical ‘Aurochs’). This does not however cut to the deep and extremely corrupt issues of the world and society at large and what should be done to solve these issues or support these people. Issues a lot more complex than the film would have you believe and routed in the selfish nature of people in positions of power (figures not depicted in the film).

La La Land (Damien Chazelle, 2016) is a homage to old Hollywood and the iconic studio films of the golden age. It’s a film whose premise is completely based on the idea of cinematic ‘nostalgia’ as filmmaker Chazelle affectionately indulges in the pristine and glamorous artistry, techniques, and romanticism of a films from the past. Being nominated for multiple awards and most famously for Best Picture at the Academy in which the famous ‘mix up’ took place, the film tells the heartfelt, and heartbreaking, love story between the characters of Sebastian and Mia (played by Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone). Mia is an aspiring actress and Sebastian a jazz musician. It’s these respective ‘dreams’ that serve as the conflict between their love and their individual life paths and Los Angeles serves as the perfect setting to encapsulate emotions of hope, wonder and passion for both their work and one another. Chazelle tells this story with such passion and energy, driven from such a clear admiration towards classical, genuinely empathetic storytelling, and this is very much evident when one considers the ‘implicit’ ideology the film presents to us.

For example, the main ideological standpoint Chazelle takes is the characters he chooses to empathise with. The protagonists of Mia and Seb are very much ‘underdogs’ in this thriving, challenging world of show business and industry. Time after time they are shown failing and yet Chazelle clearly believes their story to be the most significant and most engaging. For instance, a notable sequence that demonstrates this comes when the character of Mia goes in to audition in a part for a film. Within this sequence, framing, arrangement and composition allow the audience to empathise with Mia despite the fact that failure is not something generally ‘admired’ within society. The compositions are always flat (without depth) due to the fact wide focal lengths and symmetry are used and the walls effectively feel as if their closing in on us. This claustrophobia we feel as an audience member is also reflective of the character’s fear to an extent. Mia is also always shot with a medium closeup at her eye-level with her placed in the centre of frame. This also demonstrates that the viewer should empathise with her as shots of others appear a lot more objective and stylistically distant. Some of the coverage of Mia is even taken from a slightly higher angle making her appear quite vulnerable in this intimidating situation and the viewer therefore empathises with her as she fails her audition. Through this creative decision, Chazelle may be suggesting that people who find little success but nevertheless strive for greatness and a creatively rewarding life are a lot more admirable than people who may have attained a position of power within an industry such as Hollywood.

Another example of an ideological concept being introduced to the viewer comes in the very opening of the film. A musical number in which expertly choreographed dancing on the roofs of cars and streets of the city is juxtaposed with the chaotic and frustrating urban life of Los Angeles, California. The score is emphasised and the sounds of car horns lower in the mix as the situation becomes progressively more romanticized and stylistically alluring. A camera movement in the form of a crane shot, flies past hundreds of individuals prancing through the street, whilst other subjects who remain in their vehicles become frustrated at the slow traffic. The musical number finally concludes when we see the character of Seb, played by Ryan Gosling, sitting in his car in this state of annoyance. Through doing this, Chazelle may be suggesting to the audience that the concept of Hollywood is, to an extent, a lie. It’s an exaggerated idea of a colourful industry and Damien Chazelle’s world view suggests that in reality the creative landscape is a frustrating and unfair one.

Clearly taking inspiration from legendary directors such as Vincent Minnelli, the film sweeps the audience up and into a completely overwhelming and wondrous world of struggles and artistic expression. The vibrant and dynamic set and costume design combined with the soft widescreen anamorphic cinematography by Linus Sandgren makes for sweet, glossy and always moving viewing experience therefore emphasising this intimate relationship between the characters and the viewer via an ideological message about perseverance and relationships. Both La La Land and Beasts of The Southern Wild reflect a worldview (whether explicitly or implicitly) and the filmmaker inevitably utilises film form as a way of demonstrating this, diverting narrative expectations and allowing the audience to empathise with characters who are maybe less often featured in movies.